Camille
Cooley is an aspiring writer who has spent the majority of her
incredibly ordinary life in Southern California where she juggles her
nonexistent social life, with her writing and dogs. She has been
published in various forums and is currently trying to make more
friends. She can be contacted at cooleycamille@gmail.com.

Brittany Zedalis is a 21 year old
college senior, who is studying to be an elementary teacher. She has
been writing poetry since middle school, and plans to publish a book of
poetry one day. She has a poetry blog at: http://the-soul-of-a-poet.tumblr.com/

Sun limns lifetimes
like blossoms of the field,
flowers pressed between
tome hours, evidence
we stole the light,
that small shining hope
now bright
in old eyes.

I won't face the grim.
Tell me lies, delay
the final hour.
I'll turn from darkness
as time kernels crowd,
I'll slather sweet
salve to ease the pain
of dying.

Undertow

Frustration has settled its spurs
in my mind. Kicks never work.
Let it slide off the side
of anger, mountain to scale,
or ride by.

The power to turn on a dime
slows, friction drags.
No, I cannot see
through the seconds in between.
The down beat closes a valve,
shuts me out.

The bruised clock on the mantel
reeks of spurious minutes,
cranks its gears to chime
a mockery in my ear
of how I've left my life
behind.

Bio: Theresa A. Cancro (Wilmington, Delaware USA) writes poetry and
fiction. Her poetry has been published or is forthcoming in print and
at online sites, including Three Line Poetry, Napalm and Novocain,
Jellyfish Whispers, Kumquat Poetry, The Rainbow Journal, The Artistic
Muse: Poehemians, Stormcloud Poets Anthology, A Handful of Stones, A
Hundred Gourds, tinywords, Cattails, Chrysanthemum, and Shamrock Haiku
Journal.

Shaquana
Adams is an internationally published poet with a fondness for the
color purple. She is quiet on the outside but goofy on the inside and
writes because the best thing about writing is that she can say what
she needs to say. It is an awesome experience.

Slumped in the shadowsbeneath Rainbow Bridge.She picked at a fresh scabupon her hidden left wristwishing and willingthe irritating coloursaround herself to be gone.

It Was His OCD That Killed Him

Well, that and the big red double decker bus!

He had a sneaking suspicionthat he was in trouble that morning.For half an hour earlier he had seenone of those foam take away chip trays.Upside down and insultingly staringat him from the gutter on Stockems Corner.He had tried to jump upon it,to put an end to its perfect white arrogance.But a sudden gust of wind from The Melynblew it across the road over to the islandwhere two of his ex’s live.He was not going to tempt fateand mix bad luck up with karmaso he reluctantly let the annoying thing go free.Bad mistake and decision making, obviously.On his way back home he spat his chewing gumover his left shoulder at the 3rd drain and missed.To his horror he watched it landupon the unforgiving tarmac a centimetre awayfrom the drain containing happinessblessing and all sorts of assorted good luck.He instantly spun around 7 times on the spotand stepped back backwards out into the road.And that was that, he died instantly!It was his OCD that killed him.It was his OCD that killed him.Yes, It was his OCD that killed him

Writing Under The Influence Of Life

It is a strange thing to observe and witnessall of this un-glorious living madness.The daily carnival of the absurd.People fighting tooth and nailfor things that they do not really needand which often times do not matter.Stepping on toes, jumping queueselbowing people out of the wayat the bargain section.Arguing over shopping trolleysand parking spacesand let us not forget the Nation’s favourite sportof Road Rage, Yippee!Nearly losing an eyeoutside the post officeby anxious and frightenedumbrella wielding old ladies.Being attacked and McAssaultedoutside of Burger Kings in city centresby gangs of seagulls(Yes, the creatures I used to watchon David Attenborough programmes.Their names give away exactlywhere they should be!)There’s a smoking ban in pubsand it is illegal to smoke standingin a one sided bus stop?I’m tired of being stoppedand pocket searchedfor being in a burglary hotspot after dark.“But it’s January in the UKso it’s always dark,I live on this streetand I’m walking my dog.Officer, cast your gaze downwardssee, dog on a lead!)There are 2fas on White Lightning Cider but you need to take out a loanto buy Real Ale.The margarine that reduces cholesterolis close to £5whilst the crap that’s bad for youhasn’t been bannedit’s selling for a mere 50 pence?You need a TV licenseif you have no TV but you do havea mobile phone.All of this before you actually getinto the seedier side of lifewith the Pimps, Prostitutes,Pederasts, Rapists, Murderers,Drug Dealers, Arsonists, Muggers,Terrorists, Wars, Diseases, Famine,Genocide, Global Warmingand all of the many otherMan Made and Environmental Disasters.There is absolutely no wonderthat there are Heroin Addicts out there.Crack Heads, Speed Freaks, Alcoholicsand all the other assorted Weirdo’s.That the Prisons, Mental Institutions,Rehab Centres, Homeless Hostels, Park Benches and Cemetery’s are full.No, what is surprizing is that there isn’t more of it out there.But hey, you do not needto be Clairvoyant to see that coming,Do you now?

Paul Tristram is a Welsh writer who has poems, short stories, sketches and photography published in many publications around the world, he yearns to tattoo porcelain bridesmaids instead of digging empty graves for innocence at midnight, this too may pass, yet.

donnarkevic:
Weston, WV. MFA National University. Recent poetry has appeared in Bijou Poetry Review, Naugatuck River Review, Prime Number, and Off the Coast. Poetry Chapbooks include Laundry, published by Main Street Rag. Plays have received
readings in Chicago, New York, and Virginia. FutureCycle Press published, Admissions, a book of poems, in 2013.

Dustin
D. Pickering is founder of Transcendent Zero Press, a Houston-based
publishing company. He is editor of the print magazine Harbinger Asylum. He has been published in the Avocet, Blind Vigil Revue, di-verse-city 2013, Writers on the Rio Grande and The Beatest State in the Union (to
be published by University of Texas Press), among many others. He was a
special guest poet at Austin International Poetry Festival in 2013, and
is the author of The Daunting Ephemeral. The Daunting Ephemeral is his first full length poetry collection, and it seeks to explore religion's truths in a godless existence.

Vince had hands like a fallen saint
Crusted over from the day to day snippets
Bits of newspaper ink
He’d wipe the green liquid on the apron
Smooth you out
Your sideburns
Your social life
Vince made simplicity simple
Odds and evens
Old war stories combed together
Trimming other lives into one single message
The chair eased down with a level slide
Nervousness erased by his handshake
Those hands touched honesty
Compassionate
Vince collected money and memories
He’d ease your pain with precision
He’d listen
The ears of a George and Gabriel

Bio: J.Donnelly writes and works in Astoria, he pulls inspiration from Bucky Sinister and the Beat generation.

Bio: Clayton Bye is a writer, editor and
publisher. The author of 9 books and a varied
collection of short stories, poems, articles and
hundreds of reviews, he has also published (under
the imprint Chase Enterprises Publishing) 3 award
winning anthologies of excellent short stories by
some great talents from around the world. The first
book features general fiction, the second offering
is horror and the third is a book of detective short
stories.

Mr. Bye also
offers a wide range of writing services,
including small business management for
writers.